


Don't Mind The Shards, They're Already Broken

by AOnceToldStory, TheRedDice



Series: The Fragile Youth Timeline [1]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gang World, Alternate Universe - Gangsters, Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2019-03-30
Packaged: 2019-04-08 16:49:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 3,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14109759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AOnceToldStory/pseuds/AOnceToldStory, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRedDice/pseuds/TheRedDice
Summary: Seoul. Heaven for most—for others a place of violence and greed where one has to take what they want or die. Junmyeon's family of street-rats have lived in that world for years, surviving on car thefts and pickpocketing, but after one of their own is almost killed, they are no longer safe. Soon they will learn just how cruel their criminal reality can be.





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

>  

Kim Junmyeon has spent the past decade of his life as a missing person, living in everything from dumpster alleys to empty garages. Over the years he has devoted himself to saving young outcasts like himself from a terrible life on the street, giving them a home and a family to fight for—Minseok, a lost man looking for normalcy in a reality that he hates, Chen, an amnesiac with an unknown identity, Chanyeol, a falsely accused convict, Baekhyun and Kyungsoo, adoptive brothers who fled their home, Jongin, an orphan sent out to fend for himself, and Sehun, born and raised on the streets. Together they make up De'luxion, a small but reputable group for hire, stealing cars on the demand of some of Seoul's most notorious gangster organisation.

Everything is working out great and they've made a place for themselves in the city when, suddenly, a dangerous heist doesn't go as planned. The failure almost costs them the life of one of their own, throwing the whole family into a debt they cannot possibly repay. This is where the story starts, in the aftermath of De'luxion's gravest mistake, as they attempt to save themselves in a world where their lives mean less than nothing and their enemies are everywhere. In a desperate attempt to find safety, Junmyeon sends a request for help to China, where he hopes to reach the ears of old friends-turned-strangers and, finally, be able to save his family.

* * *

* * *

_All photo manipulations, text logos and other visual material used throughout this fanfiction are edited by me, the author. Please, do not use these edits for any purposes that are not directly related to this fanfiction. Do not crop logos, titles or author names out of the images. I claim no right to any images used to make the edits, only to the finished edits. I obviously do not own EXO or any real-life persons that may share names with original characters in this story. This story takes a creative license to reality, meaning that most locations (like street names, districts, etc.) exist in real life but are visualized differently._ _This story is lisenced under Creative Commons as of 2018 (Attribution-NonCommencial-NoDeratives 4.0 International). The text contained herein may not be copied, uploaded and/or otherwise distributed, in parts of as a whole, in its original form or edited, online or offline. It is the author's most humble request that you respect these wishes._


	2. TEASER: The First 1000 Words

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T E A S E R

**— THE FIRST 1000 WORDS —**

* * *

 

Byun Baekhyun woke up with a start in the dead of night, shivering and sweating. The remnants of the nightmare dissipated against the canopy of blackness above him, but they didn’t fully leave him. They never did. He gave up on sleep the very same minute, slipping out carefully from underneath the covers as if the soft sounds of fabric could ever wake Chanyeol up. His boyfriend snored on peacefully on the other side of the bed, undisturbed even after Baekhyun got dressed and closed the door behind him. He remembered only after doing so that his packet of cigarettes still lay on the desk in the room, but walked away and accepted that he’d have to deal without them.

He crossed the second floor of the apartment, keeping his footsteps as quiet as the soft sounds of humans from the other bedrooms. The door next to his own stood ajar like it often did, since the room was windowless and would otherwise become very warm. Baekhyun could spy the outline of a body on one of the beds inside, the other bed suspiciously empty. Baekhyun couldn’t place right now where his oldest Hyung might be, but hurried away from the door when Chen started groaning in his sleep inside the room. He didn’t want to be found staring if the other woke up, and instead made for the stairs. The third floor was dead quiet, the doors to Sehun’s and Junmyeon’s rooms both shut, so Baekhyun continued upwards.

The nightmares followed him all the way to the roof, which was also a part of the three-story apartment belonging to De’luxion. Baekhyun left the door at the top of the stairs open, feeling just a little better with easy access back to the safety inside. The air was warmer than expected of an early autumn night such as this one, but he knew that it would start to get cold soon. He took a deep breath and leaned out over the fence that surrounded the roof. He looked to the sky first, cloudy and illuminated by the city below, as autumn breezes whisked his hair into his face. The strands were silvery grey with six months’ worth of natural black at the roots, uneven and messy. He wanted to fix it so badly, but it just hadn’t happened. Smoothing the hair out of sight he bowed his head instead, spying at the street that lay nine floors down.

It would be a swift death to make the jump, although gruesome. But as inviting as it sometimes looked, Baekhyun had decided a long time ago that he would never take the easy way out. If anything he was too scared of heights to consider it.

He let the sounds of the Cheongdam night fill his ears, discerning the distant traffic from the wind and the white noise of human existence. He looked down again to the alley far below that made up the narrow space between their building and the one next door. Baekhyun had always wondered if the stories their leader had told them about that alley were true—that it was in that very alley where their little family had started so long ago.

Visions of hands in rubber gloves and electrified metal rods flashed by on the inside of his eyelids. These images weren’t from any story, especially not one that had anything to do with De’luxion. His body remembered the pain in a highly vivid way, even if he couldn’t physically sense it anymore. He closed his eyes hard to get the images to go away, but the blackness was an even better projection surface than the cloudy night sky.

He thought he heard a voice and twisted around where he stood, but he was completely alone on the rooftop. He had heard imaginary voices before, but it was still scarier to know that they were a product of his imagination than if he had actually heard something. He wished now that he had gone back for the cigarettes. His body craved some relaxation, and smoking was the only way he knew how to. Eventually, the need became too much, so Baekhyun went inside again to see if someone had left any lying around.

The home housed eight young men that at one point had too much money for their own good and too much power over their own fates, but now lived on the edge of every economical knife. The rooms still screamed of that long-lost luxury. The walls were hung with posters of light-dressed women and retro movies, mismatched traditional and street-style art. There were cool but unusable weapons on display on the shelves, everything from old swords to miniature guns. The cabinets held a wide array of liquors and wines, although most of them were empty now. The TV in the living room was hooked up to every gaming console they could get their hands on, and the dining room on the first floor had a corner for a piano and some guitars and even a bar area. The furniture stood wherever it fit because the apartment may be large but the floors were kind of small on their own. The place wouldn’t have been dusted in years had it not been for Kim Minseok, self-proclaimed housemaid, and absolutely nothing, no matter how expensive or stylish, matched. Baekhyun remembered when they’d bought the place—an actual honest deal, believe it or not—and gone shopping in three groups, coming back with whatever they liked and then fighting over who got to put what where.

He loved it, and he knew his friends did too. Here was home. Here was safety.

At least, for Baekhyun, it had been. Before _that_ happened.


	3. TEASER: Two Beds In The Same Room

* * *

T E A S E R

**— TWO BEDS IN THE SAME ROOM —**

* * *

 

Chen’s sweet breaths were the only thing that broke the silence as Minseok used the light from the gap in the door to find his bed. The younger seemed undisturbed by the early morning shenanigans of his roommate, snoozing on in his own bed across the room—Minseok was glad for it. He pulled the cover aside, yawning as he slid into the inviting softness of the covers and—

“Hyung?”

_Why do you sleep so goddamn lightly, Chennie?_

“I’m sorry,” Minseok whispered softly. “Don’t mind me.”

Chen groaned as he shifted around. “What’re you doing up?”

Minseok hated keeping things from him. Hated it passionately. “I was hungry, couldn’t sleep.”

“Sleep with me,” Chen mumbled half-consciously after he found a new comfortable position. Through the dimness, Minseok could see his outstretched arm and the empty space he’d created on the bed next to himself. Inviting and soft.

 _Would be a shame to leave it like that_ , Minseok thought with a flushed smile.


	4. TEASER: Sticker Sets

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T E A S E R

**— STICKER SETS —**

* * *

 

Kyungsoo enjoyed walking very much. He loved the peacefulness of having nowhere he needed to be. Just one step and then the next, watching the hundreds of people that buzzed about around him. The little girl tugging at her mother’s sleeve, the girls crowding the idol stores, the tourists that pointed between their dictionaries and the native signs they couldn’t read, discussing in foreign languages. Kyungsoo found such things relaxing. 

Which was exactly why he didn’t want to walk around with Jongin. His younger was energetic, talkative and, most annoyingly, an extremely good pick-pocket. His fingers snuck into almost every bulging pocket and open handbag that came close enough. His shoulders bumped unknowing teenagers but avoided the elderly, simply because he knew that the younger the victim, the bigger the chance that they wouldn’t look twice. In Jongin’s words, most likely taken straight out of Sehun’s teachings, _teenagers are awkward and unsocial_.

Someday Jongin would get caught. Kyungsoo was certain of that. When that happened he wanted to be ready to run. So he wasn’t leisurely observing the little girl or the fangirls or the tourists. He was scanning their surroundings like the look-out that he was, constantly aware of every policeman, civil service worker and store owner in sight.

 _Extremely relaxing_.

“Look, Hyung!” Jongin cheered for the fifth time and pointed to another shop window.

Kyungsoo allowed himself to be pulled along to the shop, which was overhung with calendars and poster sets featuring a variety of idols and actors that he didn’t recognise. He guessed that Jongin didn’t know them either, but at this point, nothing would surprise him about the younger. As Jongin swooned over the different collectables, Kyungsoo kept the crowd behind them in the corner of his eye. He knew that Jongin’s hand was trying to open the purse of the young girl next to him, and it seemed that he’d either succeeded or given up when he suddenly reached for a thermos with both hands.

“Aww, Hyung, buy me this, please?”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. The girl walked away with her friends after giving Jongin a quick glance, unaware of what had happened.

Now Jongin’s voice lowered as he inspected the idol group on the thermos with glistening eyes. “Nobody suspects the loud one,” he sneered proudly.

“Nobody suspects the loud _fanboy_ , you mean.” Kyungsoo browsed through a box of low-priced goods. “Look, they’ve even got sticker sets of The Wolves. How amazing.”

Jongin doubled over and slapped his own thighs at Kyungsoo’s emotionless tone. Neither of them had any idea who The Wolves were or why their faces decorated at least half of the products in front of them. Kyungsoo counted them to be twelve boys sporting a rainbow of eye colours, weird fashion and extreme hairstyles. He glanced at Jongin, in his colourful but thoughtfully put together outfit and styled,blue-tinted hair. Kyungsoo usually found _him_ to be extra. Compared to The Wolves he looked weirdly ordinary. Kyungsoo found it to be an improvement.

They put the goods back, bowed to the woman who owned the store and continued down the market street. _If only that was our life_ , Kyungsoo thought. _Posing for posters, signing albums for fans, doing concerts. I’m pretty good at singing, Baek too. Would De’luxion make a good band name? It’s better than The Wolves anyway_ …


	5. TEASER: Collision Course

* * *

T E A S E R

**— COLLISION COURSE —**

* * *

 

Chen quickly scanned the street up and in the rearview mirrors. When he was certain they weren’t being watched he got out of the car, carrying over his shoulder the small duffel bag of tools they’d brought from home. Baekhyun followed suit. As soon as they closed the doors, Minseok put the Silverado in reverse and backed down the street they’d come up. The large car vanished around the corner, the remnants of its engine sound fading into the quiet night.

“ _Now, I’ll be standing by 7eleven on 351 and Gobong-ro18-gil_ ,” Minseok told them through their headphones. “ _I’ll keep a close eye on the police station but that doesn’t mean there won’t be patrols out_.”

“We know, Hyung,” Chen replied flatly.

“ _I know you do_ ,” Minseok said with an audible smile. “ _Now shut up, they can’t hear me but they can hear you_.”

Chen resisted the urge to say We _know_ again, and instead lead the way across the street towards the garage port underneath the Gong family residence. There was a door on the side of the garage with a number pad next to it, a little more sheltered from the road outside. Baekhyun took a position by the corner of the wall, hidden in shadow but with the driveway and road fully visible to him. Chen was behind his back, finding the special tool they’d illegally purchased just for this job and began unscrewing the cover of the number pad. After some careful fiddling, the cover was off and Chen exposed the wiring behind it.

“There’s a light in the window across the street,” Baekhyun whispered without turning around.

“As long as we can’t see them they can’t see us,” Chen replied in a muffled voice, holding the screwdriver with his teeth. Baekhyun sucked in his friend’s reassurance and resumed his scanning. They were safe for now.

This was the delicate work, where it was crucial that Chen knew exactly how to go about it. He had to find the circuit board in the keypad which was connected to the alarm in the house first, before disconnecting it from the door itself. If he disconnected the door, the alarm would go off. If he cut the power to the lock, the alarm would also go off. But if he cut the signal between the alarm and the code, they could work the door however much they wanted and the system wouldn’t notice at all. _There’s always a flaw_ , Chen thought with a smug smile.

He found the circuit board, picked out the tiniest of screwdrivers among his tools and poked at the board hard. With some force, the board bent and then broke in three. He paused, listened carefully, and smiled at the continued silence of a calm night.

“Alarm’s off,” he whispered into his microphone.

“ _Awesome_ ,” Minseok replied. “ _One patrol just came home, shouldn’t be too long before another leaves_.”

“Got it.”

Baekhyun had kept his eyes on the light in the opposite house, but the blinds were still down and nothing had moved. He heard Chen screwing and bending at the handle on the door, working it off little by little. Then finally the handle came loose and almost dropped to the ground. Chen was fast enough to catch it, and the single screw which did hit the ground didn’t make much noise at all. Baekhyun turned around, the two boys froze for a moment, then Chen’s smile grew wider.

“Hyung, we’re in,” Baekhyun whispered.


	6. TEASER: Night Terrors

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T E A S E R

**— NIGHT TERRORS —**

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There were burning buildings in Baekhyun's dreams, tall like the largest skyscrapers of Gangnam’s city centre, but void of the glass and metal that made them look modern and luxurious. People screamed but there was nobody around as Baekhyun’s subconscious ripped him from one scene and threw him into another without any regards to time and space. War-like emergency broadcasts followed him wherever he ran, but they were not comprehensible in the sense that he understood what they were saying. Instead, they only filled him with dread and anxiety, the wish to flee and hide that comes with imminent danger. Halfway through the dreamscape—or what he hoped was halfway—he was hit with the heavy sensation that he had lost something along the way. He tried to look back but whenever he turned around he ended up facing forward again as if everywhere he looked was somehow all the same direction. He searched and searched in a vivid blur of colours, hopelessly running and screaming for something… or someone—he couldn’t tell. Was he being chased? Or was he chasing something?

Without warning, the ground beneath his feet fell away as if it had turned to liquid and was running down a drain. It didn’t take five seconds for the darkness of liquid concrete and gravel to swallow him completely and he came through on the other side, the underside, falling faster and faster until—

He was awake.

With Chanyeol’s hand gently stroking his chin.


	7. TEASER: The Author(s)

* * *

T E A S E R

**The Author(s)**

* * *


	8. TEASER: HEAT

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T E A S E R

**— HEAT —**

* * *

Junmyeon and Sehun got off the subway with the morning rush, holding the same tempo as the crowds even if they were running late. Their formal wear wasn’t as out of place as one would expect, blending well with the many office workers that hurried in every which direction without a care for anything but arriving to work on time. Junmyeon kept his gaze low and forward, mindful of the subway cameras that were hidden in almost every corner. Sehun carried himself more casually, his height and bleached hair already too memorable to afford looking anything but unsuspicious. The younger’s lifelong experience with the city’s underbelly society made him confident in how to move in public places—Junmyeon, who had lived most of his life as a normal kid, was still very wary. 

The building they were headed for was one of the largest ones in Seodaemun, a glass-covered office block that reflected the teal blue sky of morning like a mirror. Two large initials decorated the upper front of the building, and their meaning stood printed above the revolving front doors. _Lectrona Innovations_ was as real as any other company in the area, as was the purpose of the hundreds of workers that were streaming in. Junmyeon and Sehun fell in line with them unnoticed, then turned off from their ant path when they got inside and headed for the entrance desk. While the reasons for their visit really had nothing to do with the _data management software and support_ that the company offered, they were still treated as business guests. The woman behind the counter bowed at their approach, a professional smile glued to a flawless face, and asked for the purpose of their visit.

“Kim Suho,” Junmyeon stated simply, offering her the courtesy of a superior. “I have an appointment with Pin Kyeongho-nim at eight.”

As the woman tapped the information into her computer and validated it, Junmyeon glanced around the large foyer casually. There were several buff-looking guards in blue suits walking around, their eyes scanning every face that came through the doors as if checking them off on a mental list. He guessed that most of the workers that came in belonged to the company and were blissfully ignorant of the colleagues that they saw everyday but whose work was much different from their own.

That’s where HEAT hid their operations—in plain sight.

 

 


End file.
